


non nobis solum

by Aylen, Mossgreen



Series: a capite ad calcem [12]
Category: 2770 ab urbe condita - Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ancient Rome, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Slavery, Cocktail Party Adventures, Conversations, Cuddling, Friendship, Kissing, M/M, Nonsexual Slavery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-18
Updated: 2020-01-18
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:42:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22308853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aylen/pseuds/Aylen, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mossgreen/pseuds/Mossgreen
Summary: At a party their masters are attending, Ven and Ari get another chance to meet...
Relationships: Artemis (2770 ab urbe condita)/Ven (2770 ab urbe condita), Julian Valerius/Artemis, Original Male Characters/Original Male Characters
Series: a capite ad calcem [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1283009
Comments: 26
Kudos: 44
Collections: 2770 ab urbe condita - the collected fiction





	non nobis solum

**Author's Note:**

> Many thanks to [maqcy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/maqcy) for their fantastic beta as always! Any mistakes otherwise made are ours.

Ven really does not like cocktail parties. He's pretty sure his master doesn't, either, judging by the look on his face as he is arrayed in his best tunic and pallium (the dark green tunic with embroidery at the neck and hems and the lighter green pallium with silver embroidery at the edges). Ven himself is in a clean livery tunic and new sandals, his tabula the only item in his smartest secretary's satchel, alongside a couple of issues of _Ave! serve_ he'd added so he has something to read if it turns out he'll be spending time waiting somewhere for the party to finish.

Cocktail parties are hours of small talk for his master, interspersed with nibbling at whatever refreshments were provided, sipping at wine and muttering about whatever was in the news currently. Ven is merely expected to stay at his shoulder and take notes if anything comes up that his master needs to do something about.

There are far worse parties as far as Ven is concerned. At least at these things the attending slaves expect to remain clothed for the evening. 

He might be allowed a little time to himself at some point; there's going to be dancing during the evening and the host's slaves will clear the buffet away while the visitors' slaves will probably be dismissed to wait out of sight until the end of the evening or their masters leave, whichever comes first.

...

It’s early in the evening, and Artemis is trying not to panic as he sits beside Julian on a taxa. He isn’t sure why his master is even _bringing_ him to this party. He’s still new to Julian’s work and he barely knows any of his contacts, so what help can he be besides fetching food and drinks? Unless he’s going to be expected to help out the host’s family somehow with serving or cleaning up… which makes him panic even more. 

But, he remembers then that Julian _told him_ he wasn’t to be expected to help out the others. He’s just there so Julian can show him off a bit to a few people. Which is… worrying in itself. But hopefully he can just stay close to Julian with his eyes down and not be expected to talk for the duration of the event. Yes, that would be alright. 

"Artemis—relax," Julian says with a gentle smile, putting a hand on his thigh and squeezing. "It’ll be fine." 

Artemis looks at him and tries not to look like a spooked cat with its ears pinned back. He drops his eyes and nods. "Yes, Dominus," he says quietly, taking a breath and trying to calm himself, leaning into Julian and letting his master’s warmth soak into him. It does comfort him, and he tries to let go of his anxiety. It’ll be fine. It’ll be fine, he repeats to himself, as they finally pull up to a large, several-story domus with lit torches and a formidable-looking ostiārius standing outside. 

He takes a breath and follows Julian out of the taxa, standing close by but out of the way as his master speaks with the man for a moment before they’re waved into the domus. 

It’s busy in the ātrium, with perhaps two dozen guests in their finery milling about and chatting and a set of musicians in the corner playing soft music on flutes and lyres. The scene is lit with soft lighting supplemented by old-fashioned torches and candelabra in strategic places, and servers walk about carrying trays of appetizers and drinks for the guests. 

Artemis takes in the scene before dropping his eyes again and following Julian, who’s spotted someone he knows in the crowd. 

Several someones, by the looks of it. Julian greets a couple and another man exuberantly and their talk is quickly on the Universitās, and empire; news that Artemis has no context for and soon tunes out. 

Eventually, Julian sends him to get some wine, and Artemis nods. 

"Yes, Dominus," he says quietly, but his words are drowned out by the group chatter. He hopes he can even _find_ the drinks table… 

…

The party is just as boring as Ven thought it would be. Master was one of the earlier guests to arrive tonight, which means they're going to be circulating for _ages_ , probably.

Ven happens to be glancing at the door as the latest guest comes in. The man looks familiar, distinguished, wearing a rich embroidered tunic and pallium, but it's the smaller slave behind him that makes Ven smile. He’s only actually met and spoken with him once, but they've been allowed to email each other, and Ven considers the younger boy a friend.

He keeps half an eye on them, even while following his own master around the room, and manages to signal _salvē!_ with a gesture to Ari when the kid happens to look their way.

...

Artemis is just bringing the wine back to Julian when he sees Ven. His eyes go wide and he grips the glass a little tighter lest he drop it in surprise. He gives Ven a small smile as he passes and discreetly mouths _salvē,_ before going back to Julian. 

Oh, Ven is here. Artemis’ heart beats quickly as he gets back to the group, and as Julian takes the glass from him, Ari drops his eyes and wonders if there’s some way for him to talk to the other boy. There must be. Their masters know each other, so surely they’ll talk at some point. Or maybe Ari’ll be told to go and help with something and he’ll see Ven then. 

Their previous meeting and subsequent email exchange flashes through his mind, and he finds himself slightly nervous. He glances back up but can’t see Ven in the crowd again. 

...

This evening is some sort of charity or fundraising event, Ven knows that much, and has an idea that it's for SIPAS. The Empire doesn't interfere with how a man treats his property, so it's up to concerned individuals to support SIPAS and similar charities that keep the worst offenders in check and give the slaves a route to appeal for protection; he's heard some horror stories from older slaves about what it was like before SIPAS was widely supported in their work (despite having Imperial backing for centuries), and is aware that there's been legislation of one sort or another for millennia. 

He is pulled from his thoughts when Artemis passes, holding a glass of wine, and returns Ven's greeting.

He hopes they'll have a chance to talk this evening, but right now, he's sent to fetch a drink for his own master. He keeps an eye out for Ari as he makes his own way to the drinks table to retrieve a glass of Raetian wine, and is gratified to see the boy by his master, who is in conversation with a group of others.

A second passes before Ari glances over again and sees him, but when he does, he makes a small motion with his hand: _how are you_? he asks, interested but furtive because of the people milling about. 

Ven was looking for the motion. It's small, subtle, easily missed by the free people, who are habitually unobservant of slaves, and he gives a quick gesture of reassurance: _I'm fine!_

He really is, though he thinks that, generally, he's more recognised by the free than most slaves are; the ones who are famous in unfree circles tend to be the background actors or extras, or backing musicians and singers rather than the big-name stars.

It's good to see Ari, at least, even if they can't actually talk. The kid seems healthy and content though there's a wariness in his manner that hadn't been there when they'd first met. Ven wonders at first if it has anything to do with his, Ven's, master, but there's no interaction between them at all. Or there hadn't been, anyway. Ari seems indefinably more fragile, and Ven isn't entirely sure why, though he suspects it has to do with Ari's master. Most things affecting slaves can be traced back to their masters, after all.

Ven just wishes he can ask Ari what’s going on - even if it's something as simple as being uncomfortable serving in this environment, with so many people around.

...

Artemis waits by Julian for what seems like twenty minutes more, as he’s sent to fetch food and drinks for the various people his master talks to. 

Sometimes Julian shows him off, putting a hand between his shoulder blades and gently pushing him forward while people look at him. It makes him feel self-conscious and used, and he doesn’t like it. But he endures it all with a neutral expression. It isn’t so bad, just a little tiring having to be so ‘on’ all the time and ready for any order murmured or motioned to him. 

He’s thankful, then, when one of the host’s pretty daughters joins the conversation with a suggestion. 

"Magister, if you prefer, your boy could take a break in their holding room," she says with a smile and the raise of a sculpted eyebrow. "There are more than enough servers, after all, and he could get something to eat and drink there."

Julian hums and looks to Artemis, who has his eyes on the floor as he tries not to react to being talked about, though his heart beats a little faster at the idea of being taken somewhere else… without Julian… even if it’s to be away from the noise and people. On the one hand, he doesn’t want to get lost in this domus and who _knows_ what this place is like behind the façade of smooth entertainment. On the other hand, he would like a place to rest and have something to eat, if possible. 

"Would you be alright with that, Ari?" Julian asks quietly, and Artemis looks at him without thinking before dropping his eyes again. He registered that Julian’s _asking_ him if he would be okay with leaving. He feels like it’s not _really_ a question, especially with the host’s daughter looking at them, but just being asked and seeing Julian’s gentle expression… it almost makes him think that it is his choice. 

He takes a breath and nods. "Yes, that would be alright, Dominus," he says just as quietly. Julian looks at him for a moment before nodding. 

"Good boy," he says, rubbing Artemis’ arm, and Artemis exhales, shivering. Julian turns back to the woman. "Yes, that would be appreciated, thank you, Sisenna. Ari, you can go and find the room, alright? Ask another slave if you aren’t sure."

"Yes, Dominus," Artemis says, giving a brief nod at being excused before making his way through the milling Romans, and the servers in even shorter tunics than his. 

…

Ven remains with his master for a bit longer, filling a plate with food for him from the buffet table before being dismissed to the slaves' waiting area. 

It’s a relief to get away from the milling citizens. He skirts around them, heading for the back of the house, following directions from one of the serving slaves. 

Once through the door to the slave quarters, there are hand-drawn signs indicating the way to the designated room. It’s plain, with chairs and benches, and a water cooler in one corner. Ven grabs a cup and finds a seat where he can relax.

...

Artemis finds the back room with only a little trouble, and sighs audibly when he reaches it, thankful there doesn't seem to be any free people here. There are a few other slaves in the room, but he sees Ven immediately. 

"salvē," he says, going over, unable to keep the interested smile from his face as he tentatively takes a seat next to Ven. He’s slightly in awe of the other boy, now that he has more context for the… work he does. But he’s also just glad to see him, hopeful they can chat a bit before they have to inevitably part without warning. 

"salvē," Ven replies, smiling as he hears Ari's voice. "It's good to see you - how are you?" 

It is good to see Ari; they don't live near each other, and while it's nice that they have permission to talk over email, it isn't at all the same.

Ari’s smile brightens. "I’m alright. It’s good to see you, too," he says, touching Ven’s arm briefly. "How are you? How’s the… _party…_ been?" he asks, his lips upturning slightly—he doesn’t like things like this, and he doesn’t like being pulled along just to get a few drinks and be gawked at (though he supposed it’s more entertaining than staying home and being put to work scrubbing dishes). 

But he _is_ glad that Julian brought him, now that he knows Ven’s here. And he’s even forgotten his nervousness at being separated from Julian, too. 

"Boring," Ven says with a laugh. "Hang around, fetch drinks, get a plate and serve him whatever food he wants while you try not to wish you could have some yourself." 

Artemis laughs softly, rolling his eyes and nodding. He looks off for a moment, as if remembering all of that food they’d seen and couldn’t eat. 

This evening is better than the _other_ sort of parties Ven’s master goes to - hosts, in fact. Ven's out here, fully clothed, talking to a friend. They've got a while, he thinks, though there will be others around, of course. Not like that time at the Universitās.

"How are you after… last time?" Ven asks, looking at his friend, and Artemis’ expression falters. He looks down. 

"I’m… okay," he says, giving Ven a small smile. "I’m alright." Alright… now, anyway. Mostly. "Things happened and it was… difficult… but I think things are alright now." He fidgets with his hands, feeling that if he starts talking about what happened in too much depth he wouldn’t be able to keep it together. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ven asks quietly, taking note of the other’s body language and overall look of misery. "There’s some food out - if you like, I'll get you something to eat, so you don’t go hungry, and you can tell me about it if you want. And if you don’t want, we’ll talk about something else, how does that sound?"

The kid doesn’t look happy at all, and it makes Ven’s heart clench. If only there was something he could actually _do_. Being a friend, and a willing ear, will have to suffice, at least for now.

But at Ven’s words, some of the plain desperation leaves Ari’s face, and a small smile tugs at the boy’s lips again as he looks up. "Okay," he says, and rubs a hand over his face. "I mean… I’ll get some water, I think, and be right back. Then I can tell you about it." He smiles again briefly, touching Ven’s wrist, and leaves to go to the cooler. 

He gets a tall metal tin and fills it fully, hoping it’ll calm him down somewhat. He sits down again on the bench next to Ven and takes a drink, just letting himself feel the cool water go down. Trying to collect his thoughts. 

Ven is back in a moment with two plates. He passes one to Ari, who seems surprised but takes it with a word of thanks, and helps himself to a cocktail sausage - the food offered to the visiting slaves is plainer than what had been set out in the ātrium, but still qualifies as party food. 

Ven says nothing for a moment before saying quietly, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But if you do, start at the beginning and just say it."

Artemis looks at Ven nervously and puts his mug down, taking a slice of melon from his plate. He notices that Ven didn’t get any melon for himself, but he’d got other fruits and some crackers for both of them. 

They eat in silence for a moment, and Artemis thinks that he doesn’t really want to retell the whole thing here. Or maybe at all. He takes a breath, and then a drink of water, calming himself down as he feels himself get upset. It’s alright, he tells himself, drinking half the mug and thankful when it cools him down. 

"I think perhaps I’d just like to talk about something else, if that’s alright with you," he says eventually after taking small bites of a cracker. "I don’t think I’d last very long if I tried to retell it," he says with a breath of a laugh, though his eyebrows are still drawn. 

"That bad? Ouch," Ven says, picking a grape from the sprig he'd put on his own plate. "I told you there was one video my master never finished recording, didn't I?" 

They're sitting close together, but Ven isn't looking at Ari, giving the kid space to collect his thoughts. He wants to help, but he thinks that the problem is Ari's master's fault (it's usually the master's fault, after all). Ari's a sweet kid and doesn't deserve this.

Artemis looks at him and then up as he tries to remember. "Ah… maybe? I can’t recall. Why?" he asks. 

Why… always a good question, and the most frequent question Ven himself wants to ask.

"Because my master did something I didn't like, that made me panic," Ven says. "He thought he made it right afterwards, but it still wasn't quite put right until I found a way to talk to him. I spent a night at the larārium." The last is wryly said, and Ari looks at him with wide, solemn eyes. 

"Oh… I’m sorry," he says, eyebrows drawing further. "I… that must have been difficult, that you did that." Ari looks down. "But your master… listened to you… then?" he asks haltingly, looking up again. 

He shifts slightly, pained at thinking what could prompt such a reaction. A person would have to truly feel desperate. But Ven’s also such a calm and rational person; so hopefully it wasn’t so bad in the end… 

"Yes," Ven says, simply. Because he _had_. Ven had been at his wits' end and didn't know how else to make his master see that he wasn't all right. He would probably have been listened to if he'd tried explaining anyway, but he hadn't been thinking clearly, and he'd been desperate. 

"You might not need to do anything so… dramatic. I only did because I needed to talk about it and didn't know quite how, otherwise. But I think you should try to find the words, because you're miserable, and I don't know if he knows how badly." He sets the plate on his lap so he can rub Ari's shoulder, and Ari startles, as if not expecting the contact. 

But then the words hit him, hard, and he can’t help the tears that well up. He takes a shuddery breath and nods, putting his hands to his eyes as if to hide his reaction. He sniffs and wipes the tears away, calming. "Yeah," he says quietly, looking down. 

He thought maybe he was over it. It’s done, Julian apologized, but he still can’t help but think that he’s just somehow been proven _worthless_ or that Julian doesn’t care about him at all because of what happened. It’s difficult to rationalize, and of course he focuses on the most extreme possible explanation. Maybe he _does_ need to talk to Julian again. 

"He wants to know what you need," Ven continues, and set their plates aside so he can properly comfort Ari - they're going to have to find the ablutions area to let the kid wash his face before his master wants him, but that's something to worry about later. 

"He knows you need food and water, and somewhere to sleep, but that's for your body; we all need that. But he doesn't know what _you_ need, that makes you who you are. And he'll want to give you those things, because he doesn't want you miserable."

At least, he hasn't struck Ven as the sort of master who just wants his slaves to be īnstrūmenta vōcāles, tools with voices. He seems to Ven to be the sort of master who wants his own personal slave to have a personality, even if he doesn't show it when serving. Ven had got that much from how he'd addressed Ari that day at the Universitās - he'd spoken to him directly, by name, and not just snapped his fingers at Ari.

Artemis looks at Ven like his words are a lifeline, but he fidgets with his hands on his lap. "Yeah, I… I’m sure that’s true," he says. Who would want a miserable slave? Besides sadists, but Ari doesn’t think his master is one of those. "I just… don’t want to bother him with something that I feel like I should be able to handle on my own, you know? What if I’m just… I don’t know. I mean he apologized and said he wouldn’t do it again so I don’t know why I still feel like this." He takes a shaky breath. " _I_ don’t know what I need," he says in a small voice. "So I don’t know what to ask him for." 

"Well, I can't tell you that, but it's something you can think about, at least." 

Ari nods, feeling a bit of relief. "Yeah," he says, sniffing. 

Ven doesn't have a hanky or tissue or anything, but there are napkins on the table with the food, and it only takes a few seconds to grab some, just in case Ari need to wipe his face, and push them into Ari’s hand as Ven sits back down.

"O-oh, thank you…" Ari says. He uses one to blow his nose. 

"Or just talking to him about, well, anything," Ven says. "Like, oh, I don't know. And there are things I can't talk to my master about, at least, not without being careful about how I bring it up." 

It sucks that that's part of the life they have, but that can't be helped.

Artemis looks at him with drawn eyebrows. "Anything, but… not anything," he says with a rueful smile. "But I… I think I get what you mean." He looks away, watching the other slaves getting food and talking amongst themselves. 

"I wish I could be more helpful," Ven says, putting his arm around the other boy and coaxing Ari to lean against him. "I can't even say it's going to be all right but… I think your master's the sort who'll try, at least." 

Artemis leans against Ven and nods. "Yeah, I want to think so," he says tiredly. He wants it to be true. He honestly doesn’t think Julian wishes to do things that hurt him. 

Ven lets out a laugh that's little more than a puff of air. "Wish I could somehow get my master to send yours a copy of his book, though."

The other boy’s eyebrows draw. "His book?" Ari asks, curious. "What book?" 

"The title's off-putting to people like us, but it's not as bad as it sounds," Ven says. "It's called _The Complete Manual of Slave Mastery_ , it's kind of a training manual for owners."

Artemis goes slightly pale hearing the title, a shiver going through him, but tries to keep an open mind as Ven continues, "There's a lot about communication in it. Like, maybe half the book's about that."

Ven knows that his own master wouldn't really be the right sort for Ari, who's a darling sensitive sort of boy, and hopes that Magister Valerius can learn to be the right sort of master - and that Ari can learn not to be so nervous.

"Oh, really?" Ari asks. "Well that doesn’t sound too bad…" 

"It's… hang on," Ven says and pulls his arm back from around Ari's shoulders so that he can get to his secretary's satchel, and takes his tabula out. 

"Master uses these parties for networking, which is why I've got this with me, in case he wants me to take notes," he says in explanation, scrolling through to find something. Ari looks at the tabula like it’s magic, or some sort of illicit object he’ll never be able to have. 

Ven eventually finds it and hands the tabula to Ari to look at. "It's not as good as a print copy, but it'll give you an idea, anyway."

Ari takes the tabula with careful hands, not wanting to drop it, before he reads the title of the e-book. _The Complete Manual of Slave Mastery_ , it says. Ari swallows, scrolling with a touch of his finger to the table of contents. 

The topics aren’t very surprising, but it still makes him feel a bit dizzy reading it all in plain text. Buying, selling, training, punishment, feeding, clothing, commands, collars, sex, entertainment, management… 

He takes a breath and starts reading from the beginning, barely caring what’s being said but wanting to absorb it all, if possible. Which he knows it won’t be. It would take him a day to read this book, and when does he ever have that kind of time? 

"I wonder if my master has this book somewhere," Artemis wonders absently. "He must. Or something like it. I could probably check…" 

"If he doesn’t, I might be able to get my master to send him a copy. For, well, professional reasons or something." 

Ven doesn’t know if that’s going to be possible, or if Magister Valerius will even read the thing if he does have a copy (or get given one). He honestly wants to help his friend, but circumstances are such that he really can’t, and he hates the helpless feeling that produces. Which is pretty odd, really, because slaves generally are helpless, being completely subject to their masters.

Artemis breathes a laugh. "Yeah, that would help, I bet…" He nibbles on crackers and fruit as he reads with the tabula on his knee. Somehow he finds his way to a section on communication, and reads quickly, soaking it all up. Some of the advice here unnerves him, but he thinks it’s probably all mostly good information. 

Ven doesn’t interrupt while his friend is reading. He’s not sure how much use the information will be to Ari himself; it’s supposed to be a book for slave-owners rather than slaves, after all, but he hopes that it might help, even a little bit. Because Ari and his master need to work this out, whatever this is (and it must have been really bad if Ari can’t bring himself to talk about it. Ven thinks about some of the stuff he himself is put through regularly and thinks that it must have been something like that. Even Ven’s master wouldn’t choose a slave as sensitive and sweet as Ari for his demonstrations, after all).

Ven nibbles a cracker, chasing it down with water and some more grapes, allowing himself to daydream, a little, about Ari being his. 

They stay like that for long minutes, until a server comes into the room and calls out a name. Artemis tenses, looking up, glad when he realizes the name isn’t his. A slave on the other side of the room has to hurriedly end her conversation with another waiting slave and leave to presumably attend her master or mistress. 

Ari runs a hand through his hair and looks back at the screen. There’s too much here for him to read all in one sitting, and who knows how much time they have left. He sighs. "And you… think this might help?" he asks Ven worriedly. "You think there’s good advice in here?" 

He kind of hates that it might help. _The Complete Manual of Slave Mastery._ He doesn’t _want_ to be _mastered._ He looks away bitterly. Maybe some more grapes will make him feel better. 

"I think… I think something went wrong, and it’s got to be put right somehow." Ven gives a helpless shrug. It isn’t Ari who needs to read the book and learn better, it’s Ari’s master. The book’s for masters to learn how to be better masters (and yes, there’s a fair amount in there that Ven wishes wasn’t in there - but someone sensible will see what’s applicable for a particular slave and a particular situation - he can only hope that Ari’s master _is_ sensible, if he ends up with a copy of it).

"Yeah… that’s about the whole of it…" Ari says despondently. 

"I don’t know of any other way to help," Ven continues, slipping his arm back around Ari’s shoulders; he really needs someone to look out for him. Masters don’t interfere with how other citizens treat their slaves, unless it’s something egregious like actual, outright abuse. Which this isn’t. "I’m not good at this stuff, I wish I was."

It strikes him that Ari’s probably even somewhat scared of free people, and if he’s scared of his own master… ouch. It’s always good to be cautious, but there’s a world of difference between caution and actual fear. Ven wonders where the thought came from and shrugs it off as nonsense, unhelpful nonsense.

Artemis laughs softly. "Yeah, I know. I mean, I don’t expect you to be," he says, not wanting his friend to feel badly. "It’s alright… this book will be helpful, I think."

"You said you’d rather talk about something else," Ven says after a moment. "I’ll let you keep reading if you want, but… did your master get a subscription for _Ave! serve_?"

Perking up, Artemis nods. "Yes, we got that sorted out," he says with a rather relieved smile. "We have a subscription to that along with the newspaper and we even got a few from previous months from the shops. It’s all useful stuff. I like their articles."

"They repeat stuff, sometimes - well, subjects, not actual articles. But I like them - there’s nearly always something useful, or interesting." The magazine covers quite a wide range, which is understandable, really, between interviews with ‘celebrity’ slaves, or those who are famous for some reason (usually more famous among the unfree than the free population, of course, considering the magazine’s focus). Or with slaves who have somehow ended up doing some sort of interesting job. And there are usually tips and shorter articles that pertain more to the daily life of the average reader (Ven needn’t bother with things like ‘how to make a perfect cup of coffee’ anymore, but that doesn’t stop him reading the whole magazine).

"I’m glad you’ve got that, at least." 

And Ari’s having that shows that his master does listen, so there’s that, too.

"Yeah, it’s good to read others’ perspectives and tips and things," Ari says. "It’s interesting and makes me feel a little less alone. I like the advice column a lot." 

"I am glad you’re finding it helpful," Ven replies, and he is, really. He hopes that Ari will find something that’ll help with this current mess, too. 

"I am… it’s a good resource. I’m reading a novel now, too, which has been nice. From master’s library. It helps me relax a little in the evening, when I can read anyway. Do you… read novels ever?"

"Yes - I like historical stuff, detective novels and that kind of thing. Master sometimes buys me a new one when he’s in a good mood." Books aren’t very expensive, but Ven is trying to save his money, and it’s nice, getting something like that from his master on occasion. 

"Oh… that must be nice…" Ari says, imagining owning a book, let alone a _new_ book. 

"What sort of thing do you like reading?" Ven asks, interested.

"Oh! Well… I like historical fiction, too, and stories with magic in them. Monsters and fantasy. Romance, too," he admits. "But whatever I can get, really. A good book on botany can keep me interested for a week," he says with a small laugh. 

"Botany, huh? Isn't that plants and suchlike?" Ven asks, and Ari nods. 

"Uh-huh."

Cautiously, Ven adds, "That's something you could tell your master, you know, a practice for some of the things we've been talking about."

Artemis’ eyebrows go up at the idea of telling Julian about his interest—he wants to do that anyway—but then Ven saying it could be practice… 

"Oh… oh that’s an idea," he says, looking away, imagining it. "I mean, I already do some gardening, but if I could just… talk about it somehow." He looks down. He supposes he just hasn’t thought Julian would be interested in much that he had to say; or might not want it. 

At his previous owner, he hadn’t been asked for opinions of any kind. His first real mistress Casa hasn’t really been interested either. She’d wanted him to shut up and look cute… especially since a young male slave suddenly taking an interest in her could blow her cover with her husband… 

"Then I could… well, we’d be talking. And it would be easier to talk about other things, and…" He exhales. It sounds like a good idea, for sure. He wants to try it. 

"That's the idea," Ven says, with a smile. "Start with something small, like that. Pick your time, when your master's not busy with something else, and just say something. If it doesn't lead into a conversation right away, that's fine. If he tells you he doesn't want you to talk about anything, well, that will be useful to know."

Artemis nods, taking in Ven’s words. "Right, yeah."

Something occurs to Ven then. "You don't _know_ , do you? He's never said if it's ok for you to make the first advance."

If he's right, Ari's master has screwed up worse than Ven had imagined.

"Uh…" Artemis swallows, feeling his face heat up. "I… I mean… we’ve talked before. But I… I don’t want to bother him." Ari looks at the ground and fidgets with his hands. He sets the tabula on the bench beside him and takes a slow breath, trying not to rewind the past few months in his mind. Remembering how tense he’s been. How nervous. He feels like this is _his_ fault, somehow. 

"Oh, Ari," Ven says, tightening the hug as he sees his friend twist his fingers. Artemis leans into him and puts a hand on Ven’s thigh as if to anchor himself. "If it's going to bother him that you just want to talk, he can _tell_ you, can't he?"

Ari looks down. "I suppose…" he says. Or he could snap at him, not that he has any evidence Julian would do that, but other owners have. 

"But let's make it easy not to bother him. He watches TV, doesn't he? Pick a moment during an ad break and ask him something about it. Or in a quiet moment when he's just relaxing and not doing anything."

The other boy nods. He thinks he can do that. 

"But it _isn't_ your fault," Ven says. 

It’s Ari's owners' faults, all of them, from the first to now, that they've taught him he's a bother if he opens his mouth to say anything.

Ven can’t see Ari’s face, but his eyebrows knit and he looks like he might just cry again, but he doesn’t. He takes a shaky breath and nods, trying to soak up Ven’s warmth and pleasant cedar-like scent. 

"Yeah… I know," he says, though he still can’t quite accept it. "Thanks, Ven. I… I appreciate it a lot." He squeezes the other boy back. 

He’s a little nervous about trying to engage Julian in conversation, but it’d be good to try. For both their sakes. 

"You’ll let me know how it goes, won’t you - and if there is anything I can do, or if you just want to vent or anything," Ven says, rubbing Ari’s back soothingly. He’s trying to think how he can broach the subject of sending Magister Valerius a copy of the book with his own master. 

Artemis nods, squeezing Ven once more before leaning back to look at him. "Y-yes. For sure I will," he says with a small smile. "I always welcome a willing ear to listen to me vent," he says with a light laugh. "…And you do the same, alright?" he asks, a hand on Ven’s leg again. "I want to hear about you, too." 

"I will," Ven says, and means it. It's nice to think that there's someone who really does care that he's okay, that he's not hurt or upset or anything. He likes this closeness with Ari, too; the other's hand is warm where it rests on his thigh. He'd like to kiss him, but they really, really can't; it's too public here and he doesn't want Ari to get in trouble, especially as he's not having the best time with his master anyway.

Ari gives him a smile. "Good," he says, squeezing Ven’s leg gently. And oh, he wants to touch and hold Ven more, and kiss him too—he can see Ven’s gaze slipping to his lips—but he knows they can’t. Not here. Not here, but… maybe somewhere else… 

A moment passes before Ari looks away, and wipes a hand over his face. He laughs softly. "I should probably wash my face before I have to leave," he says. "Did you see the balneum anywhere? Maybe you could… show me where it is…?" he asks softly. It might be a risk. But, if anything, they could get out of this tiny room for a few minutes. 

"Yes, it's… oh, I think it'll be easier to show you," Ven says, and gets up. It's a risk, he knows it's going to be a risk, but right now, he doesn't really mind. He picks up the tabula and slips it back into his satchel; whatever else he's willing to risk, he doesn't want to risk losing that.

The balneum is just down the hallway. It's pretty typical of slave balnea, an open plan room with no real privacy, but Ven's used to that and he's pretty sure Ari is, too.

There’s someone using a toilet when they get there, so Ari goes to the sinks, glancing at Ven as he turns on the water, and then looking around for cameras. Yes it’s a balneum, but it’s a slave balneum, and he doesn’t take privacy for granted. At the company he was owned by before there were obvious cameras everywhere. As much to warn against bad behavior as capture it. Because who knows what serving slaves with little supervision got up to in their downtime. 

He can’t see any here, though, so he hopes that means there aren’t any. He knows hidden cameras are used sometimes, too, though. 

It might be a balneum, but they’re slaves and can have no real expectation of privacy. This is as good as they’re going to get, and they probably don’t have long before someone else comes in, so Ven finds himself putting his arms around Ari even as the door closes behind the slave going out.

"I wish…" he manages, before finding Ari’s mouth with his own. Ari’s eyes widen in surprise and he grips the sink as he gathers himself and kisses back. He makes a tiny noise and closes his eyes, ears perked for any noise outside the room. 

Oh, Ven feels and tastes so good, it makes Ari yearn for more. Always more and always now, but they can’t have either, really. 

It’s surprising how protective Ven feels of Ari, how much he wants to look after him, and Ven wonders for a moment if this is how his own master feels about him. It probably isn’t, not really; he doesn’t want to do to Ari the sort of things his own master does to him.

But the younger slave feels so good in his arms, and tastes so good, and he is reluctant to break the kiss. 

He has to, eventually; they really can’t stay here for long.

Ari’s hands find Ven’s thigh, lower down below his tunic, and slide up just under it. He so wants to just hold Ven in his arms without having to worry about clothing. To kiss him without worrying about who’s going to walk in on them. 

There's a hand on Ven’s leg, pushing his tunic up just enough to rest on the skin under where the tunic hem normally sits. Ven's own hand slides down to cup Ari's bottom, the cotton of his tunic a smooth but annoying barrier that he can't remove because of where they are and what they're doing. 

Artemis gasps and presses against him without thinking, and Ven murmurs into his ear, "You're so gorgeous."

A soft whine slips from the other boy’s mouth and his eyebrows draw as they part. "I—"

But just then they hear someone coming, and Artemis can feel his heart beating hard in his chest. 

Ven steps back and turns to the nearest sink, trying not to look guilty or self-conscious as Ari does the same. Ven knows they shouldn't be doing this, but there's something about comforting someone else, and he can't deny there's an attraction between him and Ari.

The door opens and another slave comes in as Ven manages to turn the tap on. Just someone doing normal things, though he can't bring himself to look at Ari in case he inadvertently gives them both away. Beside him, Artemis is running a hand through his hair as if to fix it, and the other slave walks by them, barely sparing them a glance. 

He waits until the man is farthest away from them before he leans in closer to Ven and whispers, "I think you’re pretty hot, too," and leans away again, getting some water from the tap and actually attempting to fix his face a bit finally. 

Ven smiles, meeting Ari's gorgeous green eyes in the mirror. He knows he looks relatively pretty himself, though his colouring isn't really that different from any other native Italian apart from the green of his eyes. Ari, however, looks far more exotic, from his red hair to the pale skin with the freckles across his face (Ven wonders how much more of his skin is freckled, under the tunic where Ven can't see). And his eyes are stunning, green and gold. Ven could look at them forever, he thinks. 

And Artemis can’t help the faint blush that works its way onto his cheeks at the look on Ven’s face. It’s nice, and he doesn’t quite know what to do with himself besides coughing and splashing more cold water on his face. He takes a few breaths and finally dries himself with a towel, looking at Ven again before he goes to the door to leave. 

There are a few people in here now and it’s much too busy to continue with anything. Maybe they can talk for a little while longer in the holding room. 

Ven crosses to the door where Ari's waiting for him, and smiles at the kid, letting their hands touch.

"I hope you feel a bit better?" Ven says as the door closes behind them. He can't offer Ari anything, really, beyond comfort and a hug, and even their kisses are snatched, which isn't fair. But that's just life, and it _isn't_ fair.

Artemis gives him a tense but genuine smile. "Yes," he says assuredly, meeting Ven’s eye and walking closer to him. "I do. Thanks," he says with a brightness in his eyes. "You know what to do, and say, to make me feel better." 

"I'm glad you feel better, I hope things work out," Ven says and he is, and does. Ari deserves all the good things in life and if Ven can't give them to him, he hopes that Magister Valerius will - and that they'll get over this situation so Ari isn't left feeling awkward and lost.

"Yeah… me too," Artemis says, pausing in the service hallway to look at Ven. They’re off to the side and serving staff go past them with trays of drinks from the culīna. Nobody pays them any attention. "I think they will. I think…" He looks down. "My master wants me to be happy." He sniffs and rubs his nose, thinking about Julian, and feeling his heart clench a little. 

He wants to be good for his master, and maybe become a friend to Julian, too, as _well_ as someone he fucks and plays with. Julian wants him to be his own person, probably, and someone who sticks up for himself… if only so he isn’t damaged. Because if he is then Julian certainly won’t want him anymore. 

"Well, what we talked about earlier will help you help him make it so that you can be. Because you're playing a guessing game right now, trying to work out how to please him, and he's playing one trying to make you happy." Or at least, Ven thinks that's what's happening, from everything that Ari's said to him.

Ari looks at him again seriously. "Yeah." He nods. "Yeah that sounds about right. And, it’s not useful to make him play a guessing game, right? I mean, if I just let him know what I’m comfortable with, what I like, I mean, that’s helping him, too. Because he doesn’t like messing up, I know he doesn’t. So I’m just going to try and help him do that less." 

Artemis takes a breath and lets it out, as he formulates the logic to help him feel more confident in his ability to say what he needs to say, and what he wants to say. It’s so confusing but… he thinks this might work. With Julian, anyway. Every person—every person who owns another person and has to deal with them—is different. As are the people they own and manage, but hopefully this’ll work for _them._

"That's it," Ven says. "The more and better you can help him not to guess, the better it will be." If Ari's master lets him, of course, but hopefully Ari has enough to be able to start, now. If he's shut down just for trying, Ven doesn't know what else he can do to help.

"Yeah…" Ari leans against the wall, watching a server pass by with a delicious looking platter of something that looks like seafood on crackers. Mm. His mouth waters just looking at it. "Yeah, well I hope so. I want to talk to him… it’s just hard, you know." Ari fidgets with his hands, looking at them as if into a crystal ball. "I know I need to… learn some things differently. I’m afraid he’ll get mad at me for saying something, and I know I have to be careful—I can’t just say whatever the hell I want." He laughs softly. "But in general he… he isn’t mean to me when I mention something. So I just have to… remember that." 

Ari swallows, feeling warm shame again at how fearful he sounds. He doesn’t _want_ to be like this, he’s just learned from experience, and his experience has taught him that… not many people want him expressing himself, or care about what he wants to do or say naturally. 

"Which is why you start with something easy, at a time when you can see he won't mind - like during an ad break when he's watching TV, or when you're just cuddling in bed - he does cuddle you, doesn't he?" 

Even Ven's master cuddles _him_ , so he would be surprised if Ari's master didn't cuddle Ari - on the other hand, they were both slaves, and very little would surprise Ven about how a master treated his slave.

But the other boy straightens and nods, eyebrows drawn again. "Yeah! I mean y-yes, he… he cuddles me." Artemis pauses for a second, happy as he thinks about all the times they’ve cuddled. It really does happen quite a lot, even if it doesn’t seem like it. "And that sounds… good, easy. Then. He’s… more relaxed then. With his work I think, he’s stressed or tense sometimes otherwise." 

"Do you think he'd like it if you offered something to help him relax, when he's working, or once he's finished, like a shoulder rub?" Ven doesn't think anyone is likely to snap at a slave who's trying to think of ways to please them, but all free people are different, and he doesn't know Ari's master the way Ari does… even if Ari doesn't know him all that well.

Artemis hums. 

"I know it's scary sometimes, but asking or offering can help with starting to talk," Ven says. "It's just a case of trying, of getting to know what he likes and doesn't like."

"Yeah… yeah that makes sense," Ari says. And he’s done shoulder rubs before; whole massages for his mistress, as well as all the other stuff. Something like that shouldn’t be too hard, even if he doesn’t necessarily like doing it. Not really. Well, maybe to Julian he might. 

"You'll be alright," Ven says encouragingly, and rubs Ari's shoulder. "Give it time, don't be too hard on yourself, it'll work out."

Ari gives him a small smile, finding comfort in the touch. "Yeah. Yeah I’m sure it will," he says with a sigh. 

Ven smiles back. It might only be small, but the younger boy has a pretty smile. He can definitely see why Ari’s master fell for him. He just hopes it'll work out without any more misunderstandings or hurt. 

A moment passes as they look at each other, relaxed in the moment, before Artemis looks down and flushes faintly. "Well do you wanna… go back in and wait for a bit? I mean, there’s not much else to do," he says with a small laugh. "Besides going to check out the kitchen, but I bet we’d be shooed out of there before we could blink." He looks into Ven’s eyes again, shy and just pleased to be with him. 

"I suppose we'd better," Ven says lightly, smiling at Ari, who's gone faintly pink. It's a pretty look on him, but Ven hopes that Ari can work through his shyness, at least with his own master. After all, he's a concubīnus like Ven (well, maybe not _just_ like Ven!) and being too shy around his master won't help him perform his expected duties. "There might still be food in the break-room anyway."

He leads the way back. The bench where they were sitting is unoccupied, but Ven pauses before sitting down again. "Did you want something more to eat?"

"Ahh…" Ari gets some more water and shakes his head. "I think I’m alright. Go ahead though, please," he says, taking a seat and sitting down. He wishes there was something hot to drink here; he’s gotten a little chilled. 

Ven helps himself to some more crackers and added some olives, cheese and garlic bread, with a bit of garum dip on the side. It's not the quality stuff, naturally, but everyone likes garum. He gets himself another cup of water and sits down next to Ari again, holding out the plate as he offers to share if Ari does want something after all.

Which he does, smiling sheepishly and taking a few pieces of cheese from the plate. "Thank you," he says quietly. "They actually do have good food here. I’d _like_ to try some of the flamingo I saw in the main room but… I’ll have to dream about it." He laughs. 

"There's dormouse, if you want," Ven said, dipping a cracker into the garum. It wasn't the worst garum he'd ever had, but it definitely wasn't the gourmet stuff.

"Oh really?" Ari finishes the cheese before eyeing the skewer of meat pieces and taking a few off the end. He sniffs them and hums. "Love this. It’s one of my favourites." He pops it into his mouth. Meat in general is… well, not a rarity… but he would like to have it more often than he does. He feels bad for having a craving for it sometimes—feels badly that something was killed for him to eat, but the world is full of injustices. 

"Mine, too," Ven says cheerfully. The olives are pretty nice and he can't help wondering whether the olives in here were diverted from the main buffet table out in the atrium. He wouldn't blame the household slaves here if they had diverted some stuff intended for the free people. He tears a piece of garlic bread off and has that, too. 

"So, apart from the, uh, obvious, what sort of things do you do for your master?" Ven asks, once he's not risking talking with his mouth full, and Artemis looks over at him with a hint of nervous wariness, just licking the tips of his fingers off. 

"I mean, you know I'm my master's secretary as well as his concubīnus."

Artemis nods. "Yes. Well, ah, I keep him company a lot or fetch things for him, do small errands around the domus. I read to him and am starting to take care of his pets. He has two dogs and a cat—and I garden as well, weeding and watering, mostly. Rullus the ostiārius does the rest of it, but he’s teaching me…" Artemis puts a hand to his mouth as he thinks. "Ahh, I help in the culīna and with the housekeeping." 

Ven remembers doing that; he's glad that his current role means he isn't expected to do housework anymore.

Which is Ari's least favourite thing to do as he’s usually given the worst jobs like cleaning the floor and the heavy pots, and barely any of the actual food preparation. Oh well, somebody has to do it, and they don’t have that many slaves in the domus. Pria does most of the other housework, though. 

"Nothing much else at the moment…" 

Ven nods. "If he knows you're helping with the garden, that gives you a reason to ask about books on plants. In addition to just because you're interested, I mean. Sometimes free people like a 'real' reason - as if a slave's being interested can't be a good enough reason on its own."

Ari breathes a bitter laugh and looks away. "Yeah you got that right," he says. 

Having an additional excuse to get that sort of thing for Ari might help overcome any sort of reluctance the magister might have, Ven thinks. "I don't know your master, but you could think about just asking him because you're interested, and only saying it'll help if he asks, or if he doesn't seem to think just being interested is enough."

Though Ven thinks that botany is more than gardening - isn’t it about plants themselves rather than just how to choose the right ones for the right place in the garden? Icarus would be able to tell him, but Icarus isn’t here.

Artemis watches him silently, intently, rubbing his hands. He looks away and down. "Yeah I could do that, I think. That wouldn’t be too hard." 

"Small steps," Ven says. "Nobody expects things to be perfect immediately - you're learning about him as well, of course." 

Of course, free people expect slaves to be learning, but a good owner should be learning about the slave at the same time. 

"Yeah, I… I know." But Artemis can only hope, thinking back to when he _did try_ and it still didn’t seem to be good enough somehow. Without thinking, he wraps an arm around himself. He’s getting exhausted talking and thinking about this so much. 

Ven could kick himself. How many times has he said the same thing to Ari this evening? Of course it's getting old by now.

"Hey, you can shut me up if you think I'm getting to be too much," Ven says and puts an arm around the other boy. Ari laughs, some of the tension leaving around his mouth. 

Ven continues, "I know I talk too much, when I get the chance. What do you want to talk about?"

Artemis smiles at him and sighs, putting his head on Ven’s shoulder. He looks around. The lights in this room are dim, maybe to keep them quiet for the party and discourage rowdiness. 

"I don’t know. What do you dream of doing when you’re eventually free?" he asks quietly. Maybe he’s asked that already. He doesn’t remember. He just loves dreaming about the future, even if it’s far off. It gives him hope. 

Ven's arm slips from Ari's shoulder to his waist. The weight of his head against Ven's shoulder is nice, and they’re beside a column so Ven can lean against it and hold Ari a little tighter. The other boy sighs and shifts closer. 

"Mmm. I don't know, I haven't really thought about it," Ven says, and pauses to do so. "I'd like to travel, I think. See some of the world. There are so many beautiful places, I'd like to see some of them for myself."

Artemis smiles, imagining far off lands; tropical beaches and cities with towering buildings. 

"What about you?" Ven asks. Ari glances up at him. 

"I’m the same, I think. But I’d also like to have a big garden somewhere pretty. Several cats. I’d like to visit the thermae a few times a week too," he says with a small laugh. "So I can swim instead of having to watch others do it instead." 

"It would be worth asking about the thermae, perhaps," Ven says, aware he might be circling the conversation back around to Ari talking to his master. "They don't mind slaves - it's more money for them, after all. If you're not sure, you could talk to one of the other slaves at home first, maybe, and see whether they think it's worth asking permission for?"

"Oh yeah, I… hadn’t thought of that," Ari says. "I’d have to think of a reason, though. Exercise, maybe, since we have showers at home for just getting clean. But it would… make me happy to go occasionally… Do you go at all?" he asks. 

"Sometimes - not regularly, though. It's nice when I can," Ven says, and hopes that Ari's master will let him. The kid ought to have nice things and ways to enjoy the time he can have to himself. "I'm used to the sea, though - I was born in Paestum, in Campania. Um. Several miles south of Rome."

Ari might have heard of it, but probably hadn't - slaves' education could be hit or miss, after all.

Ari’s eyebrows draw as he recalls a map of the area. "I think I might have heard of it," he says. "Did you swim there?" 

Ven nods. "It's near the sea," he says in reply. "Though… have you seen the sea?

"A handful of times," Ari says with a yawn and a nod. "When Casa took a day trip to the beach," he says. 

Ven shifts a little closer to Ari so the younger slave can rest against him. Their masters will probably call for them soon, he thinks. 

"I learned to swim in the sea," he says, remembering. "I miss it, you know."

Artemis smiles, imagining Ven swimming. "I’ve been in a few times. I wish I could go now. It’s very relaxing." Good exercise, too. "Does your master not go to the beach?" Ari supposes Ven’s master isn’t really the type to do the beach thing. 

"I _think_ he prefers winter holidays," Ven answers. "I haven't been his concubīnus long enough for him to take me with him when he goes away, except recently, when he went to Britannia for business. That was nice - it's colder than Italia, and very green."

"Oh, that sounds, um, different…" Ari says, about to say ‘fun’ before thinking better of it. "I’ve never been on a plane before. Or in another province. I’ve seen pictures of Britannia—it looks like a place I’d want to go to, I think." 

"Planes are… well, they're not all they're cracked up to be," Ven replies. "It was my first time out of Italia, too, so I know what that's like." The life of a slave is limited, of course it is. It would be nice if it wasn't, but there's about as much chance of slaves having the freedom to go where they'd like as there is of Ven learning to fly. They're slaves, after all, not free people!

Artemis looks at him. Now that he thinks about it, he doesn’t think he would do so well on a plane. Just the idea of it has the potential for discomfort and stress for someone like him, nevermind the average slave. "…Oh? What… what was it like? The trip," he asks tentatively, and hopes Ven knows he doesn’t have to talk about it if he doesn’t want to. 

"The trip was… Well, it was interesting, seeing another part of the Empire. Britannia is very green, like I said. I didn't see all that much, though - bits of Londinium, and Master hired a car to drive to Aquae Sulis. Lots of hills, some very pretty views. They treat slaves pretty much the same way we're treated here. The plane was all right. I had a seat next to Master - they know citizens probably want to have their slaves with them, though he had a first-class seat and it might be different for people flying economy."

Remembering the flight is all mixed up in remembering the essay his master had made him write, which is making him feel a bit squirmy - but Ari has seen the videos his master put up, so there isn't really anything he should feel embarrassed about. He tightens his arm around his friend, and picks up an olive with his free hand, chewing it thoughtfully.

Artemis hums. "Well it doesn’t sound like a _bad_ trip. Sounds like you were comfortable and got to sightsee a bit. I’d like to see someplace more green than here," he says wistfully. "Do you… like traveling with your master?" he asks carefully. "I haven’t travelled very far with mine but I like it, I think. He actually cares that I’m not uncomfortable, unlike Casa." 

He rolls his eyes, remembering all her shopping and day trips where he’d carried things until he nearly dropped from exhaustion, or was given to the luggage handlers on a train and stuffed in a cramped baggage car to endure the trip. It’s true he hasn’t gone far with Julian yet but he has a feeling for some reason that his current master wouldn’t want him shoved away somewhere convenient because Julian was done with him. 

"…My master enjoys the company, even if all I’m doing is sitting at his feet. Which is kind of nice, I guess. I like being with him—better than being in a windowless compartment or room, anyway." 

Ven nods. "Yeah. I think… You know, I hadn't thought about it before, but I think it's the same for my master, too. Which is a bit weird to think about - you've seen some of those videos, you know what he does. But when he's not working, when he's just relaxing - or even when he's doing something at home in the tablīnum - he usually wants me with him. I hadn't thought it might be because he likes the company. It is kind of nice, when he just wants to run his hand through my hair."

Compared to everything else his master wants to do with him, just sitting at his feet is nice and peaceful and relaxing, Ven thinks, and Artemis gives him a small pleased smile, like he’s happy he could help Ven get to this realization. 

"I haven't really done much travelling with my master," Ven continues. "He goes out to Osteria Nova every week, I don't know if you know it? And he takes me with him. I like that." Mostly because the trips distract him from thinking about the recently filmed videos going live, and all the lewd comments people post in response to them.

"Ah… I don’t think I do," Ari says, looking down as he tries to recall it. "What do you do there?" he asks curiously, before going back a bit and commenting, "But yes, I think… I mean our masters are human, and even if it's only in part, they bought us to be a comfort to them. It’s good to remember that, I think. We’re valuable even if we aren’t doing much." 

He looks down, thinking about it. He wishes it were that simple, anyway. Wishes he could think he’s valuable even if he isn’t doing much. It’s a nice idea, but he isn’t sure it’s totally accurate. But, he supposes it does give him _some_ measure of comfort. 

"Yes," Ven replies. "Part of the value of slaves like you and me is because of how we look, as well as what we can do. So yes, it makes sense that our masters like us to be with them, even if we're not really doing anything much."

Poor Ari; his confidence has been badly knocked for no reason other than his previous owners' thoughtlessness, and it seems to Ven as though his current master isn't much better right now, though from what he can work out, that isn't deliberate.

At Ven’s words, Artemis flinches. He looks down at the ground. Yes, he supposes that’s right. When their worth is boiled down to it, all it is is looks and usefulness. But… "But they like to talk to us, too… so that can’t be just it…" he says, a little desperately, though he tries not to show it. 

Ven feels Ari flinch at his words and tightens the arm around him, trying to offer a bit of comfort. 

"No, it's not just that, at all," he says, glad that Ari's master does like to talk to him, even if he doesn't always get it right. There's the possibility that he will be open to listening to Ari. "You just said that your master likes spending time with you, didn't you?"

"Yes, but…" Artemis stops, unsure what he’s even trying to say. "Nevermind. He… he does, and I’m glad he does." He sighs, turning to look at Ven’s neck and jaw. 

Artemis wants to kiss him there, but there are too many eyes on them. Instead, he satisfies himself by just looking, seeing the ever slight hint of stubble there on the other slave’s angled jaw. He smells nice, too. Without his permission, Artemis can feel his eyelids getting heavier as the evening turns into night. 

"Here, do you want to lay down?" Ven says, realising that Ari seems to be struggling a bit to stay awake. It’s fine if he'd rather just rest his head on Ven's shoulder, of course - he's probably made the kid uncomfortable enough this evening and doesn't want to add to it. 

He's cute and sweet and Ven just wants to take him home and look after him, but of course he can't - Ven's a slave himself, for one thing.

Artemis huffs a soft laugh. "Thanks, but I’m alright," he says, shifting a bit so he can more comfortably have his head on Ven. "If you don’t mind I’ll just stay here… you’re warm." His eyebrows draw and he puts a hand over Ven’s where it’s resting on Artemis’s waist, linking their fingers slightly. Ven’s very warm. 

"I meant, if you wanted to lay down here and, well…" Ven's pretty sure he's gone pink. He knows the whole power balance and sexual undertones of someone putting their head in someone else's lap - he's done it with his own master often enough, after all. "This is nice too, though," he adds, lacing his fingers with Ari's.

But now Ari’s gone pink too, his whole face warm and his eyes wide. He exhales hotly and squeezes Ven’s fingers slightly. He hadn’t wanted to make Ven feel badly or like he wanted to get away from him, but now he sees what else Ven wanted—and he’s kind of flattered. It’s nice to be wanted, even if Artemis is clueless sometimes! 

He looks up at Ven a little, head still on his shoulder. "You want my head on your lap?" he asks, innocently enough, but he can’t help how he bites his lip slightly and curves his hip into Ven’s hand—looking to get a small reaction from him. 

Artemis knows they’re probably going too far, now, but he can’t bring himself to care that much. If questioned, he thinks he could say that he was just tired and cold and didn’t know he was doing anything wrong—Julian would probably believe it. He feels a little badly that he’s willing to lie to his master, but he wants closeness with someone who _isn’t_ his master, badly. And they’ve already… done things, which he hasn’t told Julian about, which is basically lying, anyway. 

"Well, if you want. It'd be more comfortable," Ven says. It doesn't need to be sexual, even - friends do this sort of thing, after all, though mostly they aren't slaves. 

He doesn't want Ari to get in trouble - _he_ doesn't want to get into trouble. It would be nice, though, even just for a bit, and he's pretty sure Ari's kind of sleepy by now, and it would be way more comfortable than the plain bench, or the floor. He can’t help rubbing Ari’s hip gently with his thumb, even despite not wanting to cause trouble for the younger boy.

Artemis hums, smiling and squeezing Ven’s hand. He breathes out a nervous breath and then shifts before he can talk himself out of it, moving and putting his head in Ven’s lap. He curls up slightly on the bench, glad the hem of his tunic is fairly long and the lights are low in this room. It’s nice, and he finds himself relaxing. It is decently comfortable like this, he thinks. 

Ari's head is warm and heavier than Ven had expected, but it's a nice sort of weight. He can't help the 'if only' thoughts that come to his mind - if only he were free, if only he could buy Ari for himself - better yet, if they were _both_ free. If you're going to daydream about impossible things, why not go all the way? He smiles down at the younger boy and brushes a strand of hair off Ari's forehead, noticing how the younger slave seems to be relaxing, letting the tension bleed away.

This is nice, Ven thinks. He could get used to this.

They stay that way for a good twenty minutes, Ven looking down at Ari and watching the other slaves come and go, and Ari in a light doze. It’s peaceful. 

Until Ven notices an elegantly dressed Roman leaning against the door to the room watching them, his arms crossed and a small, speculative smile on his lips. It’s Julian Valerius, and Ven has his slave’s head in his lap. 

_Fuck!_ Ven had no idea how long the citizen had been waiting there and watching them. Watching him, with Ari's head in his lap.

"Ari," he said, shaking the younger slave's shoulder. "Your master's ready to leave."

Gods, please don't let him be angry with them!

Artemis wakes with a yawn and looks up. "What?" he mumbles, before he sees Julian, and cool fear douses him before he can process what’s going on. Oh. He wipes his face and sits up, sparing Ven a worried glance before standing, and then Julian’s come over to them and Artemis swallows. Ven stands as soon as he's able to, and waits with his head down and his hands folded.

"Dominus," Ari says, using the title he uses for Julian at home. 

Ven hadn't expected Ari's master to come looking for his slave himself; the usual thing was to send one of the house's slaves to fetch the guests' slaves once the citizens were ready to leave.

"Hello," Julian says, rubbing Ari’s arm and seeming not put out in the least at finding them together. "And I see you’ve found your friend once again. Ven, Varius Metellus’, yes?" he asks Ven. 

"Yes, sir," Ven replies, relieved that Ari's master doesn't sound upset, or annoyed, or anything else that presaged bad things for a slave. He falls silent again; simply having a citizen present means that Ven can't presume to say anything further without being asked a question directly.

Julian hums, curious. "Well, you two looked like you were very relaxed, and I’m sorry to have disturbed you," he says, with shocking consideration to their comfort. Artemis swallows again, knowing citizens can’t always be taken at their word sometimes. All sorts of niceties are said in public that mean nothing—but… Julian seems at least partially earnest. 

Though, if Artemis is correct, he’d swear he saw a look in Julian’s eye when he was standing by the door that wasn’t exactly innocent. He _liked_ watching them together, and Artemis isn’t sure he knows how to feel about that. 

He shifts. "Apologies, Dominus," he says quietly. "I didn’t mean to fall asleep."

Julian smiles, hand reaching up to rub his slave’s neck under his collar. "It’s alright. It’s late, and there’s nothing else to do here, really. I probably should have left you at home."

Artemis gives Julian a small smile before dropping his eyes again. "Thank you, Dominus." He swallows, not wanting to say the wrong thing. "I only wish to be of assistance to you, and… wherever you want me to be, I’ll go," he says carefully. He wants to somehow say that he enjoyed being here, and with Ven, but he doesn’t know how to phrase it in a way that sounds like he was being a benefit to Julian. 

Ven can't actually say it, but he's glad that Magister Valerius had brought Ari tonight; it was good to talk with him again. But he's glad to see the affection that the citizen's offering - he does seem like the sort of owner who will try to do the right thing by his slave, at least. If the two of them haven't screwed up badly where he could see it.

Julian hums, stroking Ari’s cheek lightly with the back of his hand before he turns to Ven again. 

"Well, thank you for looking after him for me," Julian says with a light smile. Anyone who saw it would say he was just being abundantly courteous to another man’s slave. But Artemis can tell it’s not exactly that; there was something in his eyes before that said _I know what’s going on here and I don’t really mind. In fact, I want to see more of it._

It… worries Artemis, slightly. If Julian knows about them being close, then…? 

But he doesn’t seem upset, so that’s good, right? It should be good, but Artemis just feels a knot in his stomach. He hopes… hopes he can see Ven again. But will Julian let him? Will he… encourage it? Artemis doesn’t know.

Ven doesn't quite know what to say in reply to the Roman’s words. _My pleasure_ would be far too forward, and probably so would _you're welcome_ ; what comes out is a slightly startled, "Any time, sir." It might be daring but he adds, "Thank you for bringing him, sir."

He had expected to be ignored, after all and isn't sure what it means that the citizen hasn't ignored him after the initial interruption.

Though about to turn away, Julian stops and looks at Ven again, considering. Coolly pleased. Artemis’ eyes are still downcast but he has a small smile on his face.

Julian hums. "Yes, well, I’m glad he came," he says, his lips quirking up, and then he’s glancing at Artemis and away. "Come along," he says, and turns away. Artemis looks at Julian and then back at Ven quickly. 

"valē, Ven. Message me," he says with a smile. 

"valē, Ari, I will," he replies, and watches them leave. He wonders about the expression he saw on Ari's master's face, and hopes that his friend can find the courage to try talking to his master. Magister Valerius looks like a kind sort of owner, and Ven can't help wondering why he would have come to the slaves' waiting area himself rather than send a slave to fetch Ari.

Ven isn't left to wonder for very long before he is sent for as his own master wants to leave. The evening has been better than Ven expected, he hadn't expected to see Ari here, much less be able to have a conversation with him. It's been good, but Ven is more than ready to go home and sleep.

**Author's Note:**

>  **translations**  
>  _non nobis solum_ \- (title) not for ourselves alone  
>  _tabula_ \- tablet computer  
>  _pallium -_ colourful outer garment worn by citizens, less formal and cumbersome than a toga, and could be worn in a variety of ways, depending on personal preference  
>  _tunic -_ knee-length, short-sleeved garment, usually secured at the waist with a belt or cord  
>  _taxa / taxa capra_ \- ‘taxi cab’/pedicab - bicycle powered covered taxi, cycle rickshaw  
>  _dominus_ \- master  
>  _domus -_ house/townhouse  
>  _ostiārius_ \- doorman  
>  _ātrium_ \- open central court / formal entrance hall  
>  _salvē_ \- hello, good morning/afternoon/evening (spoken to one person; the plural is _salvētē_ )  
>  _larārium_ \- household shrine, usually in the ātrium of the house  
>  _balneum_ \- washroom  
>  _culīna -_ kitchen  
>  _ostiārius_ \- doorman  
>  _thermae_ \- public bath complex  
>  _concubīnus_ \- a male concubine, bed-slave, male sex-slave. (Always a slave; a female - concubīna - may be a free person)  
>  _tablīnum_ \- home office, the study for the master of the house  
>  _valē_ \- goodbye (to one person, the plural is _valētē_ )


End file.
